Settlement refers to all forms of human habitation. There are two types of settlements;
    Rural settlements
    Urban settlements
1)    Rural settlements
It is the settlements where most of the habitants are involved in primary activities such as; agriculture, fishing, forestry, mining and hunting.
                    Types of rural settlements
a)    Farmstead or isolated buildings;
       It is a single building at the middle of the farmland
b)    Hamlet; it is made up of few buildings around the road junction
c)    Village; it is an area with a population of less than 2000 people with buildings, small shops, churches etc.
Rural settlement patterns
It refers to the manner in which the buildings are arranged. The patterns include; nucleated, dispersed and linear.
    Nucleated settlements;
           It is the settlements where the buildings are close to each other due to insecurity.
    Dispersed settlements;
            It is the settlements where the buildings are spaced out or far away from each other.
    Linear settlements
            It is the settlement pattern whereby the buildings are aligned along the road because of trade. 
Advantages of rural settlements
1)    Natural environment;
          The rural areas have natural vegetation and the streams and rivers are also free from the influence of man.
2)    No pollution and congestion;
             There are few vehicle and people in rural areas for easy circulation. There are no industries to pollute air, land and water.
3)    Community spirit
            The people are close and related to each other. They form a common community and even spend time and eat together.
4)    Abundant resources
              Villages are blessed with resources as; forest, soils for cultivation, water for cooking and farming etc.
Disadvantages of rural settlements
1)    Insufficient or social facilities;
              Facilities such as pipe borne water, electricity, hospitals are not available or are poorly developed.
2)    Unemployment;
               They are no job opportunities in rural areas due to low or no industries.
3)    Poor infrastructures;
               There are poor transport networks, poor road, poor building, surrounded by bushes.
4)    Low living standards;
               Most rural areas lack social facilities and amenities such as schools, restaurants, leisure centers.
Urban settlements
           It is a settlement whereby, most of the inhabitants involved in secondary and tertiary activities e.g. manufacturing industries, transport and banking etc.
Types of urban settlements
1)    Town: it is a built up area with a population of above 2000 people larger than a village. E.g. BUEA, KUMBA and NKONGSAMBA etc.
2)    City: it is a built up area with a population of more than 1million people. It is well developed with buildings and roads e.g. DOUALA and YAOUNDE in Cameroon.
3)    Conurbation: it is a large built up area well developed by the coming together of two or more towns. Buenos Aires in Argentina and Saint Paolo in Brazil.
4)    Megalopolis: it is a very large built up, extending over several kilometers formed as the results of the merging or coming together or two or more conurbation.
Some major towns in Africa
Some towns in Africa which are also capital cities include;
    Logos in Nigeria
    Dakar in Senegal
    Algiers in Algeria
    Nairobi in Kenya
    Johannesburg in south Africa
    Accra in Ghana
    Libreville in Gabon
Formal and informal sectors
I.    Informal sectors:
          This is the part of an economy that is not taxed ad controlled by any form of government.
It is not organized and structured like the formal sectors. 
Examples include; marketers, vendors, artisans, cross borders, traders, bike riders etc.
II.    Formal sectors:
               It is a legal sector that pays taxes to the government and it is well structured and organized with stated wages. E.g. enterprises like banks etc.